Orcas Islander tells international group
of scientists how to expand their impact
posted 05/14/05
PRESS RELEASE: It is not very often that private citizens are invited to speak at international scientific meetings, but last week Orcas Islander Ron McDowell gave a keynote presentation to a group of over 100 scientists. The organizers of GeoHab 2005, an international forum on Marine Geological Habitat Mapping, heard about Ron's involvement in local marine science projects and invited him to speak during the conference opening.
Having no official training in marine biology, McDowell is passionate about the marine environment and has invested time and money in local marine conservation efforts, such as the SeaDoc Society where he is an Advisory Board member.
At the meeting, which included scientists from as far away as Australia and Fiji, McDowell told about his personal ties to the ocean growing up fishing in Alaska and about the declines he's seen in fish and wildlife populations during his lifetime. He told researchers that people are wrong to think that the government is going to fix these problems without private interest and support.
"Our state and federal agencies are trying to manage our resources on a shoestring budget," says McDowell. "If we want them do what's right, we need to help them get the information they need." McDowell urged the scientist to collaborate to maximize the impact of their work and to look to private citizens to help fund and conduct research that the government is not supporting.
For example, the SeaDoc Society has funded over a million dollars in critical research using privately raised funds. One project funded by the SeaDoc Society started a joint US-Canadian effort to map the entire seafloor between the Puget Sound and Georgia Basin, the results of which are already furthering conservation of Northern abalone, rockfish, and other declining marine species.
Another example used by McDowell is how he and his wife personally hosted an entire graduate class from Moss Landing Marine Labs (California) at their residence on Orcas. Over the course of several weeks seven scientists from the US and Canada mentored students who completed nine different research projects, including local seafloor mapping, digging soil samples to measure historical seafloor levels, and looking for evidence of past geological events.
With the help of the Canadian Coast Guard Survey Vessel, the Otter Bay and private boats like McDowell's, the students even found a fault in the county's seafloor that probably produced a tsunami in the region about 300 years ago.
McDowell is now interested in organizing private SCUBA divers to collect the data needed to confirm this. McDowell pointed out that projects like these add value to state and federal efforts and are successful because they leverage collaboration between scientists and countries and involve students and private citizens.
In his address, McDowell also urged scientists to educate private citizens about their findings, pointing out that the more people are educated, the more they'll care about our marine heritage. "Big businesses pay lobbyists to further their use of marine resources. Private citizens need to also have a seat at the table and the only way they'll be able to effectively voice their concerns is by being educated," says McDowell. He hopes that ultimately, this will results in more people volunteering time with non profit organizations, donating money for research, and telling law makers that conserving our living marine resources is important.
SeaDoc Society makes research relevant
posted 01/24/05
The SeaDoc Society is working to solve the complex issues facing marine species at risk by funding over $1,000,000 of scientific research to date and ensuring that the science gets used to inform management decisions. They are strong collaborators with many of the organizations concerned with marine ecosystem health and often serve as a clearinghouse for information.
Most of the collaboration work is managed by Regional Director and Chief Scientist, Dr. Joseph Gaydos, who is a translational expert. He takes complex data and makes it relevant and relatable for all audiences -- political, NGO, educational, private citizens, and other scientists. Gaydos was recently appointed by Governor Locke to be a Member of the Sound and Straits Commission and will be a plenary speaker at the Puget Sound Georgia Basin Research Conference in March 2005.
Every day the SeaDoc Society works amidst interesting questions facing the marine ecosystem such as:
- What do you do when one threatened species eats another?
- Why did 35 acres of eelgrass disappear in Wescott Bay?
- Are Marine Protected Areas a useful tool for restoring declining species?
- What happens to the rest of the seafloor ecosystem in an area where geoducks have been harvested?
If you would like more information on some of the work being done to reverse the decline in our marine ecosystem health, please contact Anne Stoltz, Director of Development and Communications.
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